Colts Neck, Union Beach team up to aid recovery

Feb. 4, 2013

UNION BEACH — Just days after superstorm Sandy, residents from Colts Neck visited this Bayshore borough to get a sense of what, if anything, they could do to help the residents affected by the storm. Since then, people from the two municipalities have formed Operation Provide Comfort to help families get their homes and lives back together.

“The need didn’t go away just because the storm did,” said Jim Sfvayer of Colts Neck, a retired Marine Corps officer. Sfvayer has been a volunteer for the group since it started, and has become its meeting organizer.

The group usually meets on a weekly basis, staggering the meetings between the two towns.

Volunteers for the group are from both towns, and Jen Maier, Union Beach administrator also attends the meetings to give updates of the town’s progress.

At its Thursday meeting, the group discussed getting the word out to the public, its Facebook page at facebook.com/OperationProvideComfortUnion Beach and its fundraising efforts.

As the group moves closer to being able to help the families rebuild their homes, its members are seeking a warehouse near Union Beach to store the building supplies it plans to buy, Sfvayer said.

As for its fundraising, “all the money raised ... goes to Operation Provide Comfort,” said Tom Clarke of Colts Neck, one of the original members of the group. There are about 40 volunteers, and more are welcome, he said.

Clarke also is a member of the Colts Neck Lions Club. He announced that the Lions upcoming Valentine’s Day Dinner and Dance will benefit Operation Provide Comfort. The event will be from 7 p.m. to midnight on Feb. 16 at the Trump National Golf Club, Route 34. Tickets for the event are $100 per person.

For more information about the volunteer group or to purchase tickets to the dinner/dance, call 732- 332-0409